Method of making yokes for garment hangers



Feb. 8,- 1949. w. LUDWIG 2,460,939

METHOD OF MAKING YOKES FOR GARMENT HANGERS Filed Aug. 24, 1946 //a Z A?4 7 y M Patented Feb. 8, 1949 METHOD OF MAKING YOKES FOR GARMENT HANGERSWalter Ludwig, Detroit, Mich, assignor to L. A.

Young Spring Mich.

& Wire Corporation, Detroit,

Application August 24, 194i, Serial No. 692,766

9 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in method of making a yoke for agarment hanger.

The main objects of the invention are:

First, to provide a yoke for a garment hanger and a method of producingthe same, which yoke is of tubular cross section and of fibrous materialand which is conformed and shaped to provide strength and rigidity andadapted to smoothly engage a garment supported thereon.

Second, to provide a garment supporting member and a method of producingthe same, which supporting member is of tubular cross section and offibrous material and in which the bottom wall thereof is conformed andshaped to facilitate the ready connection thereto of garment supportingmeans to dependingly support a garment from beneath said supportingmember.

Third, to provide a garment supporting member of the type abovedescribed and a method of making the same which facilitates economy ofproduction.

Further objects relating to details and economies of construction andmethod of production will appear from the description to follow. Theinvention is defined in the claims.

Structures and steps in the method of production, illustrating preferredembodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawing inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a paper tube to beconformed and shaped toprovide the yoke of r the garment hanger.

Fig. 1Av is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the end of thepaper tube of Fig. 1, illustrating a step in the method of producing thesame.

Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal vertical section of the tubular yokeand die members illustrating a step in the method of conforming the yoketo shape.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view in vertical section taken on the line 33 ofFig. 2.

t the steps for conforming the same to shape have --been completed, and

2 Fig. 7 is a view in side elevation 'of the yoke after the steps forconforming and shaping the same have been completed.

Referring to the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawing,my garment hanger comprises a yoke I having downwardly diverging garmentsupporting arms 2, this yoke in the preferred embodiment of theinvention being of tubular cross section and of fibrous material. Theyoke l at the apex 4 thereof has its under wall 5 upwardly collapsedagainst the upper wall 5 of the yoke longitudinally centrally thereof,to provide a longitudinal groove-like recess 1 in the under-wall asshown in Figs. 2, 4 and. 6 to impart rigidity and strength to the yokeat the apex thereof.. The yoke arms 2 are downwardly bent at their outerends 8 to smoothly engage the garment at the shoulders thereof. Thesedownwardly bent portions are formed by the method and means ashereinafter described by collapsing the under wall of the yokelongitudinally centrally thereof vertically upwardly into abutingrelation with the upper wall of the yoke forming the downwardly openinggroove-like recesses 9 in the bottom wall as shown in Figs. 2 and 5.These groove-like recesses facilitate bending the end portions 8 intodownwardly curved form and impart strength and rigidity to the outerends of the yoke arms.

The yoke I is formed of the-paper tube It) shown in Fig. 1 and conformedto shape between the relatively vertically movable upper and lowerconforming die members II and I2, conventionally shown in Figs. 2, 3 and4. The die members are opened into vertically spaced relation to permitthe tube II! to be placed into the conforming cavity of the lowerdie'member 12 after which the diemembers are closed upon each other,comforming the yoke to the shape shown in Fig. 2. The lower die isprovided with an upwardly projecting and longitudinally extendingrib-like member l3 at the apex of its conforming cavity. to collapse thelower wall 5 of the yoke against the upper. wall '6 and to providethedownwardly opening longitudinally extending recess I, in the lower wall5 as shown in Figs. 2 and 4. The lower die member I2 is also providedwith upwardly projecting and longitudinally extending rib-like members[4 at the outer ends thereof, to collapse the lower wall of the yokeagainst the upper wall and to provide the downwardly openinglongitudinally extending recesses 9 in the bottom wall of-the yoke asshown in Fig. 2. g The conforming cavity I5 of the upper die member H isdownwardly curved at pendently thereof.

its outer ends it to form the downwardly curved shoulder portions 8 ofthe yoke.

The yoke arms 2 intermediate the apex 4 of the yoke and the outer ends 8of the arms are provided with the openings 16! extending transverselythrough the lower portions of the arms. These openings are formed bycutting spaced longitudinal slits I! in the underwall of the yoke arms,and collapsing the under wall up wa-rdly on the outer sides It of theslits forming the longitudinally extending supporting strands I9 spacedfrom the upwardly collapsed portions Q8 of the bottom wall of the yokearms, as shown in Figs. and '7. The openings 16 i are adapted to receivesafety pins or other suitableattaching means for detachably anddependingly supporting a garment from. beneath theyoke, the loops orstrands l9 constituting means for supporting such safety pins or otherattaching means.

Referring to Fig. 5 for the method and means of forming thepin receivingyoke-openings l6l, the pair of slits ii are cut into the bottom wall ofeach yoke arm by means of a pair of slit cutting members 28 supportinglymounted within These slit cutting members may be fixedly secured to thelower die the lower die member l2.

member or mounted for vertical movement inde- After the cutting edges ofthe slit cutting members has cut through the lower wall, a'furtherrelative inward movement of the cutting members collapses the bottomwall portions 3 upwardly, on the outersides of the slits. Uponwithdrawal of the cutting mem- "bers by relative movement of cuttingmembers "and yoke, the bottom wall portions I8 on the opposite sides ofthe slits remain permanently upwardly collapsed as shown in Figs. 5 and7. ."The'slit' cutting and forming operation of Fig. 5

may be' simultaneously with or before or after conforming operation ofFig. 2. The collapsing of the bottom wall upwardly on the outer sides.of the slits ll is facilitated by the outer beveled portions 2! of theslit cutting members 28.

The paper tube ill of the yoke is formed of a plurality of plies orlayers convolutely or otherwise wound to tubular formation and cementedtogether. Fig. 1A illustrates 2. ply 22 of paper having adhesive 23applied to a surface thereof and being wound to tubular formation. Theyoke in its entirety including all the conforming .andshaping operationsof Figs. 2 and 5 may be performed quite promptly after the tube has beenwoundto tubular formation and before the glue or adhesive 23 used incementingthe plies or layerstogether has set. This facilitates slippingof the plies relative to each other during the conforming and collapsingoperations, and permanent retention of the same to the conformed orcollapsed shape after the adhesive has set.

The foregoing structures are characterized by inexpensiveness in theproduction thereof, the rigidity and strength thereof, and byeffectiveness in smoothly supporting a garment from the top surface ofthe yoke and'dependingly supporting a garment from beneath the yoke. Themethod of producing the same may be readily eiiected by a relatively feweasily performed steps.

The yoke structure previously described constitutes the subject matterof a divisional application.

Embodiments of the invention as to structure and method of producing thesame, which incorporate .the principles of the invention has 4 beenillustrated and described. It should be understood that the foregoingterminology is used descriptively rather than in limiting sense and withfull intent to use equivalents of the features shown and describedwithin the scope of the following claims.

Having thus described .my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is:

l. The method of conforming the garment supporting arms of a yoke memberof tubular cross section and of fibrous material, comprising the stepsof cutting a pair of parallel slits through and longitudinally of thebottom wall of each yoke arm and upwardly collapsing the bottom wall onthe outer sides of the pair of slits to form an opening through the yokearm for receiving means for dependingly supporting a garment frombeneath the yoke member.

2. The method of conforming the garment supporting arms of a yoke memberof tubular cross section and of fibrous material, comprising the stepsof cutting a pair of slits in sideby side relation through andlongitudinally of the bottom wall of each yoke arm and upwardlycollapsing the bottom wall on the outer sides of the pair of slits toform an opening through the yoke arm for receiving means for dependinglysupporting a garment from beneath the yoke member.

3. The method of conforming the garment supporting arms of a yoke memberof tubular cross section and of fibrous material, comprising "the stepsof cutting a pair of parallel slits through the bottom wall of each yokearm and upwardly collapsing the bottom wall on the outer sides of thepair of slits to 'form an opening through the yoke arm for receivingmeans for dependingly supporting a garment frombeneath the yoke member.

'on the outer sides of the pair of slits to form an opening through theyoke arm for receiving means for dependingly supporting a garment frombeneath the yoke member.

5. The method of conforming a garment supporting member of tubular crosssection and of fibrous material, comprising the steps of cutting a pairof slits in side by side relation through the tubular Wall of saidsupporting member and collapsing the tube inwardly on the outer sides of"the pair of slits to form an opening through the supporting member forreceiving means to dependingly support a garment from the supportingmember, said pair of slits being cut by a pair of cutting membersbeveled on the outer sides thereof to facilitate said inward collapsing.of the wall on the outer sides of the pair of slits.

6. The method of conforming a garment supporting member of tubular crosssection and of fibrous material, comprising the steps of cutting a pairof slits in side by side relation through the tubular wall of saidsupporting member and collapsing the tube inwardly on the outer sides ofthe pair of slits to form an opening through the supporting member forreceiving means to dependingly support a garment from the supportingmember.

7. The method of conforming a garment supporting member of tubulaitcrosssectionand of fibrous material comprising the steps of cutting a pair ofslits in side by side relation through the tubular wall of thesupporting member and collapsing the wall inwardly on the outer sides ofthe pair of slits to form an opening through said member, said pair ofslits being out by a pair of cutting members having cutting edges andportions offset laterally outwardly from said edges to facilitate saidinward collapsing of the supporting member wall on the outer sides ofthe pair of slits.

8. The method of forming a yoke member for a garment hanger comprisingthe steps of applying an adhesive to one of the surfaces of a layer offibrous material, winding said layer to Provide a multiply tubularmember, conforming said tubular member between conforming die members toprovide downwardly diverging garment supporting arms having downwardlycurved garment supporting portions at the outer ends of said arms and toprovide in the bottom wall beneath said downwardly curved end portionsupwardly collapsed portions having downwardly opening longitudinalgroove-like recesses and to provide in the bottom wall intermediate thedownwardly diverging arms an upwardly collapsed portion having adownwardly opening longitudinal groove-like recess, and slitting andconforming with pairs of slit cutting and conforming members the bottomwall between the intermediate collapsed portion and the collapsed endportions to provide a pair of slits in the bottom wall of each yoke armwith the bottom wall on the outer sides of each pair of slits upwardlycollapsed, said die conforming and slit cutting and conformingoperations bein simultaneously performed before the adhesive between theplies in the tube forming operation has set.

9. The method of forming a yoke member for a garment hanger comprisingthe steps of applying an adhesive to one of the surfaces of a layer offibrous material, winding said layer to provide a multiply tubularmember, conforming said collapsed portion and the collapsed end portionsto provide a pair of slits in the bottom wall of each yoke arm with thebottom wall on the outer sides of each pairof slits upwardly collapsed,said die conforming and slit cutting and conforming operations beingperformed before the adhesive between the plies in the tube formingoperation has set.

WALTER LUDWIG.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,160,127 Coney May 30, 1939'2,286,529 Young June 16, 1942

